Ltd., enabling Simcere Vaxtec to resume production of its influenza vaccine

Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo, and Nagasaki University signed a collaborative research agreement to discover new drugs for the treatment of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) caused by dengue virus...In separate news, Astellas signed a deal to access the TSUBAME2.0 supercomputer at the Tokyo Institute of Technology to discover candidates for NTDs caused by dengue virus

Cancer Research Technology, the commercial arm of Cancer Research UK, and the Institute of Cancer Research, London, said they were collaborating with Janssen Biotech Inc., a unit of New Brunswick, N.J.-based Johnson & Johnson, to discover a potential new multiple myeloma drug

Another $13 million to $15 million in equipment, integration service and testing will be provided by Agila...Cardiome Pharma Corp., of Vancouver, British Columbia, said Institutional Shareholder Services Inc...The compounds are thought to have relevance for Parkinson's disease

The FDA stated that bleeding rates associated with new use of Pradaxa do not appear to be higher than those with new use of warfarin, which is consistent with observations from the pivotal RE-LY trial

Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo, said the European Commission approved expanded options for pre-treatment prior to use of Qutenza (8 percent capsaicin patch...Medigene's partner, Nordic Pharma Group, of Paris, is planning to launch Veregen in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia this year, upon conclusion of the reimbursable price-fixing procedure by the responsible authority...The IMODI project, which brings together big pharma firms including Paris-based Sanofi SA and Ipsen SA, along with

The news was hardly unexpected, as the product was nodded through by the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) in January...In order to acquire something interesting, it's going to be very expensive, and some people are afraid they'll have to pay too high a price...Those and other questions are likely to get a further airing in Brussels Tuesday

Ark has been struggling to keep itself afloat since 2010, when the European Medicines Agency rejected gene therapy candidate Cerepro for use in glioma...Medigene's partner, Nordic Pharma Group, of Paris, is planning to launch Veregen in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia this year, upon conclusion of the reimbursable price-fixing procedure by the responsible authority...Vanda said it intends to reassess its European regulatory strategy once those results become available

The news was hardly unexpected, as the product was nodded through by the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) in January...In order to acquire something interesting, it's going to be very expensive, and some people are afraid they'll have to pay too high a price...Those and other questions are likely to get a further airing in Brussels Tuesday

Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo, said the European Commission approved expanded options for pre-treatment prior to use of Qutenza (8 percent capsaicin patch

Apricus Biosciences Inc., of San Diego, said it intends to cease financing its French subsidiaries, Finesco SAS, its French holding company, Scomedica SAS, its French sales company and NexMed Pharma SAS, its marketing company...In other news, law firm Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman LLC, of New York, said it is investigating claims on behalf of purchasers of Spectrum securities, after shares (NASDAQ:SPPI) fell as much as 38 percent on March 13 on news that the company slashed its revenue projections

Inc., of Whitehouse Station, N.J., and Luminex Corp., of Austin, Texas, signed a collaboration and license deal to develop a companion diagnostic device that will be evaluated to help screen patients for recruitment into Merck's clinical development program for MK-8931, an oral, beta amyloid precursor protein site cleaving enzyme inhibitor and Merck's lead candidate for Alzheimer's disease...Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., of Tokyo, and the Scripps Research Institute announced plans to expand their

The IMODI project, which brings together big pharma firms including Paris-based Sanofi SA and Ipsen SA, along with biotechs such as Transgene SA, of Illkirch, France, is designed to make the selection of new effective treatments to combat eight cancer pathologies easier...That news "shocked the Street," according to Roth Capital Partners analyst Joseph Pantginis...Investors took the news hard, sending shares of Spectrum (NASDAQ:SPPI) falling $4.64, or 37.3 percent, to close Wednesday at $7.79

CMX001 is a broad-spectrum, oral nucleotide analogue lipid-conjugate designed to block the replication of double-stranded DNA viruses...Leica Biosystems, of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK, and Synthon Biopharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of specialty pharma firm Synthon BV, of Nijmegen, the Netherlands, inked a deal to develop and commercialize a companion diagnostic test using Leica's BOND system paired with one of Synthon's antibody-drug conjugates, with the aim of enhancing the treatment of solid tumors

and other affiliates he controls, proposing to acquire outstanding shares not currently owned by the group for $9.56 per American Depositary Share (ADS) or $4.78 per ordinary shares in cash...Simcere's board formed a special committee of independent directors to evaluate the offer

Astellas Pharma Inc., of Tokyo, said its Canadian subsidiary won Health Canada approval of Myrbetriq (mirabegron, extended-release tablets) for overactive bladder with symptoms of urgency, urgency incontinence and urinary frequency...Eisai Inc., of Woodcliff Lake, N.J., reported that the German Federal Joint Committee said it considers the additional benefit of Fycompa (perampanel) unproven when compared to two other treatments...Eisai said it believes the committee "failed to adequately interpret

The company has also submitted new drug applications to the FDA for canagliflozin and for the fixed-dose combination therapy...The companies will expand their existing collaboration to include joint promotion of Abilify in Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden and the U.K. Lundbeck will promote Abilify in Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and Romania...Under the agreement, Lundbeck will have the right to promote all formulations of Abilify currently marketed, sold or

to develop, manufacture and supply commercial quantities of Ofirmev (acetaminophen) injection in flexible plastic bags...PolyTherics Ltd., of London, received an undisclosed milestone payment from Celtic Pharma Holdings LP, also of London, triggered by further progress on their hematology alliance to produce longer-acting versions of blood factor proteins...Sorrento Therapeutics Inc., of San Diego, signed an exclusive option to acquire Igdrasol Inc., of Fountain Valley, Calif., a private company

As part of the agreement, the company pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor, entered a five-year corporate integrity agreement and agreed to dismiss its lawsuit challenging FDA regulations that criminalize truthful speech about approved drug uses. (See BioWorld Today, Oct. 24, 2011...Roche will provide R&D funding and scientific expertise to BioLamina